Get Your Rose Bushes Ready for Winter!

Before the freezing temperatures, high winds and heavy snows of winter hit your area, prepare your rose bushes to survive the harsh elements.

At Greenwell State Park in Southern Maryland, master gardeners led by rose expert Diana Klassy did just that in early December.

The 3-Step Process

Through a three-step process of pruning, fertilizing and mulching, 10 gardeners spent about two hours prepping approximately 50 bushes in Greenwell's rose garden.

Of course, the process won't take that long for most home gardeners. Those who have only two or three bushes need less than 30 minutes to get the job done--including cleanup! And it doesn't take a master gardener to prepare roses for winter either. In fact, the task is so easy that even novice gardeners will have no difficulty getting their rose bushes ready for the cold months ahead.

Step One: Trim

Trim your rose bushes to eliminate long canes that could 1) snap off in the wind or 2) flail about in the wind and potentially damage the bush.

Be sure to use a bypass pruner (featured above). Unlike an anvil pruner, a bypass pruner cuts stems and canes cleanly without pinching or crushing them.

In addition to cutting back long canes, you'll also need to trim each shrub so that it's no more than hip or waist high. And remember, you're not pruning in order to induce blossoms; you're just reducing the size of your bushes to lessen the likelihood of damage due to winter storms and high winds.

Step Two: Fertilize

Next, fertilize your rose bushes.

First, remove debris from around the base of each plant. Then, add about 3/4 C. of lime to large bushes and about 1/4 C. to miniatures and other small rose bushes. Work the lime into the soil with your fingers.

Step Three: Mulch

Finally, apply mulch to your rose bushes, heaping compost, shredded bark, leaves and other natural materials over the base of each plant. Applying a blanket of protection will help maintain an even temperature at the root level, and that will keep your rose bushes safe from the freezes and thaws of winter. To that end, don't be stingy with the mulch! Pile it up as illustrated in the photo to your right.

Create bush "collars" out of newspaper.

Here's another way to winterize your rose bushes. Although it's a bit more involved, it works!

First, make collars out of old newspapers by folding two-page spreads over and over again until you have created a thick strip that's about 5 inches wide. Place it around your rose bush's base and staple the ends together. Then fill in the circle that your newspaper collar makes with mulch and old leaves.